Oil could transform Brazil's economy. But not necessarily for the better THE legend is that Brazil never lives up to its vast potential. When Stefan Zweig, an exiled Austrian writer, said in 1941 of his new home that it was the "country of the future', popular humour quickly added the rider "and it always will be'. More recently, when Goldman Sachs bracketed Brazil with Russia, India and China as the "BRIC' countries that collectively represent the world's economic future, there was much muttering that its mediocre rate of economic growth condemned it to be an interloper in such dynamic company. Yet there are reasons to believe that South America's economic powerhouse of 190m people is starting to count in the world. Economic growth has risen steadily, to 5.4% last year. That is modest by Chinese standards